Against his teak tan Terry Venables's teeth were flashing brilliant white. The 63-year-old milked the audience with practised ease but it was never the media he needed to win over.

Instead, the man chosen by Steve McClaren to act as his assistant faced strident opposition from within the Football Association's international committee, where some considered Venables's expensively enamelled bridgework to be all that was white about him. These FA blazers, led by the former Liverpool chairman Noel White, had long years of service and remembered the disruption and distraction that reports about Venables's probity in business had brought.

There had been no question about his abilities as England's coach - a role, indeed, that the FA created for him,after withdrawing the traditional title of manager and the seniority that implied. The euphoria of Euro 96, with Paul Gascoigne's sublime volley against Scotland and the 4-1 destruction of Holland, guaranteed he would enjoy the support of the nation's football fans.

But that was not enough for those in the international committee and Venables recalls the antipathy between him and the men in the cloisters of Lancaster Gate from a decade ago. Even when McClaren offered Venables the post of assistant manager, he had to ask for reassurance.

At first he insisted he had "never had any thought at all" about the feelings of White et al but then provided a more illuminating insight in a moment of unguarded reflection. "I doubted I would be involved again," Venables remembered. "In the beginning it was such a delight for Steve to come on to me. Then I said: 'Is everything all right with this?' He said it was fine, would I like to do it and I said 'yeah, let's talk about it'."

Given the doubts of his FA superiors, McClaren's decision to appoint Venables was courageous, requiring a boldness that the former Middlesbrough manager hopes will characterise his new career.

"Whenever I'm thinking of the future, assistants and who could help, Terry's always been one of them," said McClaren. "I wasn't interested in anybody's disapproval or whatever." Venables, in 1998, had been temporarily suspended from being a company director after a Department of Trade and Industry inquiry. That ban has now been served, rendering committee members' resistance useless. Whether Venables harbours any hard feelings is unknown but when asked if he had unfinished business with his national team, he was clear.

"Well, yeah," he said. In recalling his departure from the FA's employ in the aftermath of Euro 96, he said: "I suppose you could say it was my decision. It was a disappointment at the time but it was how I felt and you get on and go on to the next thing."

The selection of Venables also suggests a certain humility in Sven-Göran Eriksson's successor. Given that the notepad-clutching McClaren had carried a reputation rich in tactical acumen at Manchester United and as Eriksson's No2, the man with the top job in English football showed modesty in promoting Venables's capacities.

"When I picked an assistant who could work alongside me to help the team I wanted someone who was tactically astute, who knows football inside and out, who could give me the best advice," said McClaren. "I wanted him to have experience of working at top level with the top players. I don't mind that he's a bigger personality than me, it doesn't matter. The only thing that matters is getting this team together, getting it playing with a great spirit and getting it winning. I wanted a person the players could respect, like, work with and learn from and especially I wanted them to be passionate about England and want them to succeed. I believe Terry Venables fits all those criteria."

With Steve Round, the Middlesbrough coach, Venables will perform a scouting role for McClaren, helping on the training pitch and doing whatever he can to ensure the team thrives.

McClaren even suggested he owed Venables his job at Middlesbrough after his rescue of Bryan Robson's team had kept them in the Premiership. In return, Venables insisted he intends to work in complement, not in conflict, with the England manager.

"I'm not looking to be a rival," said Venables. "I'm here to help Steve. My job is to support him. I'll give him my feelings, straight out, about what I think about things. It's then up to him to think those things through and come up with the answer. He's the head coach, there's no doubt about that at all."

Venables is fortunate that even those in the FA international committee have recognised this.

El Tel's jobs since his last England stint

Crystal Palace

June 1998-Jan 1999

Signed a five-year contract worth £3.5m, and he received a house, a tax-free £750,000 and share options worth £2m. He left in January 1999 with Palace on their way to relegation from the Premiership, as new chairman Mark Goldberg sought to cut costs.

Middlesbrough

Dec 2000-June 2001

Appointed Bryan Robson's assistant in an attempt to steer the club away from seemingly inevitable relegation. When he arrived Boro were bottom with two wins from 17 games. They eventually finished 14th. Left because Teesside was too far from his business interests in London.

Leeds United

July 2002-March 2003

He oversaw the start of the club's decline and was sacked after 30 games, 10 of which were won. There were mitigating factors: Leeds sold Rio Ferdinand within a fortnight of his arrival and Robbie Keane, Robbie Fowler and Jonathan Woodgate all followed under his watch.

Portsmouth

August 1996-Jan 1998

Bought controlling stake in the club for £1 and became director of football and chairman. Within 16 months he had sold his shareholding and left with the club fighting relegation, the finances in chaos, the team full of under-performing Australians and a £300,000 "performance bonus".

Australia

Nov 1996-Feb 1998

Combined his work at Portsmouth with the role of coach with Australia. Won his first 12 games but lost 1998 World Cup qualifying play-off against Iran in catastrophic circumstances - two goals up with 20 minutes to play, they eventually went out on the away-goals rule.